Alabama

Auburn infielder Damon Haecker talks with pitcher Casey Mize Saturday, May 6, 2017, during game 2 of the series against Alabama at Plainsman Park in Auburn, Ala. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)
(Julie Bennett)

Auburn was listless and nearly hitless as it reached an 11-year low on Saturday afternoon.

Auburn dropped its seventh straight game -- the program's longest skid since losing 10 in a row to close the 2006 season -- as three LSU pitchers combined to two-hit Auburn in a 9-1 affair at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. It marked the second straight week that Auburn (32-21, 14-13 SEC) was dealt a series sweep, as Butch Thompson's club has hit a downward spiral late in the season that has greatly damaged the team's postseason positioning.

"All the way around we got to get a little bit better and not feel sorry for yourself," Thompson said on postgame radio. "There's a bunch of people that don't feel sorry for us, but this team will have to step up with some urgency against Ole Miss at home next week."

Walker issued a first-inning walk to Daniel Robert before retiring the next 18 hitters he faced. He worked around a pair of seventh-inning walks before his no-hit bid, and shutout, were broken up in the eighth inning on a solo home run by Sam Gillikin -- his first of the season.

"He just took the sting out of our swing and it was very routine today," Thompson said.

Two LSU relievers combined to throw a scoreless ninth, as LSU's pitching outmatched Auburn's all weekend. After a rough outing from Keegan Thompson during Friday's loss, Auburn got a lackluster performance from sophomore right-hander Casey Mize in the finale.

Mize had his worst performance of the year, lasting just four innings (a season low) while allowing five runs (a season-high) and striking out two (also a season low). Mize allowed six hits to the 18 batters he faced, including four in the second inning as LSU manufactured a 3-0 lead.

None of the hits was more damaging than the one Mize allowed in the fourth, when Micahel Papierski launched a two-run shot off the righty to make it 5-0. It was Papierski's second two-run home run in as many games.

The five runs allowed were the most surrendered by Mize since March 19, 2016, when he allowed six in just the third start of his career. The four innings pitched were his fewest in a year, when he went four inning against Mississippi State on May 15, 2016.

"The last two weeks, I think you could just see that Keegan and Casey are not at 100 percent, and when they're not at 100 percent, that's tough for us," Butch Thompson said. "Them being at 100 percent is probably why we've won six conference weekends, and we'll try to go for our seventh next week, but you hope they could turn the corner and get back."

With Mize and Keegan Thompson not at the top of their games like had been most of the year, Auburn hardly stood a chance against LSU as Auburn found itself in early holes all weekend. Auburn finished the series with just four total runs scored, only two of which were earned against LSU's weekend rotation, which combined to throw 23 2/3 stalwart innings.

The result was an Auburn team left searching for answers as it heads into the final week of the regular season. After a meteoric rise and timely efforts on the mound and at the plate for much of the year, Auburn has been in a tailspin of late that included back-to-back sweeps at the hands of Alabama and LSU.

Auburn has fallen from atop the SEC standings and is now in the middle of the pack in the conference, while the team's RPI has tumbled from 19 all the way down to 43 following Saturday's loss.

"The only way they'll impact change is to do it at game time next weekend," Butch Thompson said. "I expect we'll work really hard. Hopefully Luke Jarvis will get back for us, and hopefully Keegan and Casey will keep learning, keep growing and keep getting better every week to be restored to what they were earlier in the year."